Absorbent article

ABSTRACT

An absorbent article intended for use as a urine-collecting insert in a diaper or an incontinence guard includes an inner casing layer (2) of liquid permeable material, which when the article is worn lies nearest the body of the wearer, an outer liquid permeable casing layer (3) and an absorbent pad (4) located between the casing layers. The outer casing layer (3) has a lower liquid permeability than the inner casing layer (2), such that liquid absorbed by the article is able to pass through the outer casing layer and absorbed by the diaper or incontinence guard, relatively slowly and in a controlled fashion.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to an absorbent article intended for useas a urine-collecting insert in a disposable diaper or an incontinenceguard, said article including an inner casing layer of liquid permeablematerial which lies nearest the body of the wearer in use, an outerliquid permeable casing layer, and an absorbent body or pad enclosedbetween said casing layers.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

An adult incontinence guard must be adapted to the type of incontinencefor which it is to provide a guard. In milder forms of incontinencewhere only small quantities of fluid are discharged, a thin, small guardmay suffice to protect the underwear of the wearer, whereas heavierincontinence will require diapers of high absorption capacity andleakage reliability. Furthermore, for anatomical reasons, male andfemale incontinence guards must be configured differently. The specificproblems encountered when configuring male incontinence guards resideprimarily in the tendency of the male penis to move readily in theguard, or to be positioned incorrectly when putting on the guard.Consequently, in the case of known male incontinence guards, it isimpossible to anticipate that region of the guard in which wetting willprimarily occur. In the case of female incontinence guards, on the otherhand, a so-called wetting point can be determined more readily, and,consequently, it is easier to optimize the absorption capacity of femaleincontinence guards.

Leakage will often occur in known male incontinence guards because urinehas either been delivered to one side of the guard or to random regionsthereof. Because the urine has been absorbed within random regions ofthe incontinence guard, parts of the absorption material will havebecome saturated with liquid, resulting in leakage, whereas other partsof the absorption material will have remained unused.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

As a result of the present invention, there is provided an article ofthe kind mentioned in the introduction which reduces the risk of leakagewhen large quantities of urine are discharged. The inventive article isprimarily characterized in that the outer casing layer has a lowerliquid permeability than the inner casing layer, and, consequently,liquid absorbed in the article is able to pass to the outer casing layerin a relatively slow and controlled fashion, and collect in the diaperor incontinence guard.

The inventive article can be used by both men and women, and therewithsolves the particular problems mentioned above and associated with theuse of male diapers or incontinence guards.

When the inventive article is used by men, the article is placed overthe genitals of the wearer. A conventional, adult diaper is normallyplaced externally of the article, with respect to the wearer. Thearticle receives all urine that is discharged, said urine beingtransferred progressively to the externally located diaper as theabsorbent pad of the article becomes saturated. The diaper is thus ableto slowly absorb the liquid transported from the article.

According to one embodiment of the invention, the outer casing layer ofthe article is divided into zones of mutually different degrees ofliquid permeability. This affords the possibility of guiding the liquidabsorbed by the article to selected parts of the diaper which exhibitparticularly high absorption capacities or liquid dispersion ability,besides affording an additional guard against limited regions of thediaper becoming quickly saturated with liquid and therewith causingleakage.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention will now be described in more detail with reference to anexemplifying embodiment thereof illustrated in the accompanyingdrawings, in which FIG. 1 illustrates one embodiment of an inventivearticle in a stretched or extended state, with the side intended to lieagainst the wearer in use facing towards the viewer, and FIG. 2 is aperspective view of the article illustrated in FIG. 1 with theelastication active; while FIG. 3 illustrates a second embodiment of aninventive article in an extended or stretched state, with the sideintended to lie against the wearer in use facing away from the viewer.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The article 1 illustrated in FIGS. 1-2 comprises an innerliquid-permeable casing layer 2, an outer casing layer 3 and anabsorption body or pad 4 enclosed between the two layers 2 and 3.

The absorbent pad 4 may comprise an absorbent fibre material, such asfluff. If desired, this material can be mixed with another absorbentmaterial, for instance so-called superabsorbent polymers, by which ismeant polymers that are able to absorb liquid in quantities equivalentto many times the natural weight of the polymers. Non-absorbentsubstances, such as melt fibres, can also be admixed with the absorbentpad. The pad may include either a single absorbent layer or two or moreabsorbent layers having mutually different material compositions.Differences with respect to the type of material and the length ofmaterial used may also occur within one and the same layer and betweendifferent parts thereof. The absorbent pad 4 has the configuration of anisosceles triangle, having two equally long side edges 5a and 5b and athird shorter side edge 5c.

The inner liquid permeable casing layer 2 will preferably consist ofnon-woven fibre fabric. Another conceivable material is perforatedplastic. The outer casing layer 3 has a lower liquid permeability thanthe inner casing layer 2. This can be achieved by forming the outercasing layer 3 from a perforated plastic or a hydrophofically-treatedfibre fabric. Parts of the outer casing layer may consist of aliquid-impervious material, for instance plastic, while other parts canconsist of the aforesaid, more liquid-permeable materials. The casinglayers 2 and 3 are preferably of the same size and shape, and beth ofsaid layers extend slightly beyond the edges 5a, 5b, 5c of the absorbentpad, such as to form side flaps 6a, 6b, 6c along which the casing layers2 and 3 are mutually joined by means of a binder, such as melt glue. Theequally long edges 5a, 5b of the absorbent pad are therewithcorresponded by side flaps 6a, 6b of mutually equal length, and thethird edge 5c of the absorbent pad is corresponded by a third side flap6c. The elastic devices 9 extend from the pointed end 10 along each ofthe side edges (5a, 5b) of the absorbent pad over at least part of thelength of the side edges.

The article 1 constitutes a complement to a traditional diaper and isintended to be placed nearest the body of the wearer over the maleorgans, whereafter a diaper (not shown) of any chosen kind is placedexternally on the article 1.

Because the article is placed over the genital organs of the wearer, thearticle will take-up the first of the urine discharged, often in largequantities. When the article has become saturated, liquid will slowlypass through the outer casing layer 3 and be subsequently absorbed bythe outwardly lying diaper. This enables the diaper, in turn, to slowlyabsorb the liquid, without risk of leakage past the diaper edges, aswould otherwise be the case, owing to the fact that a diaper does notnormally have time to accommodate large quantities of liquid that aredischarged at one and the same time. The article thus retards the flowof liquid while ensuring that liquid will not be delivered to diaperregions other than those which lie against the article, in any other wayother than through absorption dispersion in the diaper.

Elastic devices 9 are embodied in the side flaps 6a, 6bof mutually equallengths while in a stretched state. The elastic devices 9, for instance,may have the form of elastic threads, bands or the like. The use ofelastic foam material is also conceivable in this regard. The elasticdevices are suitably glued to one or to both of the casing layers. Theelastic devices may be placed at any desired distance from the edges 5a,5b of the absorbent pad and from the side flaps 6a, 6b, 6c. A curved,container-like part 7 is obtained at the pointed end 10 of the articlelocated between the two side flaps of mutually equal lengths. Thepointed end 10 is intended to be placed beneath the scrotum of a malewearer when the article is in use. The curvature of the article and theformation of the container-like part 7 is achieved due to the fact thatthe elastic devices 9, which are located in the side flaps 6a, 6b alongthe two converging edges 5a, 5b of the absorbent pad 4 contract from apretensioned state. Because the absorbent pad narrows in a directiontowards said pointed end 10, its local resistance to bending aroundtransverse axes decreases in conformity with this narrowing of the pad.Thus, the absorbent pad 4 is curved more pronouncedly at locationsnearest the pointed end 10 than in other pad parts, as will be seen fromFIG. 2 which shows the article subsequent to contraction of the elasticdevices.

The elastic bias may have different or equal values within differentparts of the side flaps 6a, 6b. Naturally, it is conceivable tointroduce different degrees of elastic bias or pre-tension, depending onthe desired curvature and desired size of the object.

According to one preferred embodiment of the invention, the elasticdevices are attached in the side flaps 6a, 6b in spaced relationshipwith the edges 5a, 5b of the absorbent pad. The elastic devices 9 willtherewith raise the side flaps 6a, 6b, so as to form leakage-preventingbarriers. Furthermore, the side flaps 6a, 6b can be utilized readily andin a practical manner when the article is used by men. Thus, the articleis first twisted so that it will curve in a direction opposite to thatintended when using the article, whereafter the pointed end 10 of thearticle is gripped by the fingers of one hand in the vicinity of aregion of the side flaps 6a, 6b between the elastic devices 9 and theedges 5a, 5b of the absorbent pad, whereafter the article is passed overthe male organs of the wearer and twisted into position, with the aid ofthe elastication. The elastic devices also have a retaining action andcounteract sideward movement of the article when worn, which renders thearticle particularly suitable for use as an insert in an incontinenceguard or a diaper.

The elastic devices can also be applied over the absorbent pad, althoughin this case the elastic devices will not cause the side flaps 6a, 6b tolift and form leakage barriers.

FIG. 3 illustrates an article 1' which identical to the articleillustrated in FIGS. 1-2, with the exception that the outer casing layer3 is divided into an upper and a lower zone, referenced 8 and 11respectively.

The remaining parts of the article 1' are identified with the samereference signs as those used to identify corresponding parts of theincontinence guard 1 illustrated in FIGS. 1-2.

The upper zone 8 extends from outer edges of that side flap which, whenthe article 1' is worn, is intended to be turned up against the stomachof the wearer, and extends parallel with the side flap 6c, approximatelyhalf way towards the pointed end 10. The outer casing layer is liquidpermeable in the upper zone 8 and comprises, for instance, a perforatedplastic material or a hydrophofically-treated non-woven material.

The lower zone 11 includes that part of the outer casing layer whichcontinues from the upper zone 8 down to the pointed end 10. The lowerzone 11 comprises, for instance, a liquid impermeable material, forinstance polyethelene plastic.

The degree of liquid-permeability of the various zones, and also thenumber and location of said zones, can be varied endlessly. Forinstance, in the case of the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 3, both theupper and the lower zones 8, 11 may consist of a liquid permeablematerial in the form of perforated plastic or the like, in which thenumber of perforations and/or the size of said perforations differ fromone zone to the other. It is also conceivable to impart solely to theside flaps 6a, 6b, 6c and a region of the outer casing layer locatedimmediately inwardly of the side flaps a liquid permeability which islower than the remaining triangular region thus obtained in the centreof the outer casing layer.

The invention shall not be considered to be limited to theaforedescribed exemplifying embodiments thereof, since severalmodifications can be made within the scope of the following claims.

The article has an essentially triangular shape. Various triangularshapes are conceivable within the scope of the invention, such as theshape of an isosceles triangle, equilateral triangle or a scalenetriangle. Furthermore, the triangular shapes may have rounded corners,and triangular shapes with non-linear edges are also conceivable. Withthe intention of enabling the article to be gripped more readily whenputting-on said article, in the aforedescribed manner, rounded recessesmay advantageously be formed in the absorbent pad. This will alsoprovide higher leakage barriers, since the distance between the flapedges and the pad edges increase as a result of these recesses.

It is also conceivable to incorporate some form of absorbent material inthe side flaps. In order to obtain a good elastic seal and enable thearticle to be twisted readily when putting on said article, it isnecessary for the material in the side flaps to be more flexible andbendable than the material in the absorbent pad.

In the aforegoing, the article has been described as being particularlysuitable for men. The article, however, can be used advantageously alsoby women, as an insert in diapers or incontinence guards. It can also beused advantageously with children's diapers.

The article can be symmetrically configured, so as to form a basin-likespace between respective corners, this configuration being particularlysuitable for women.

The invention is not restricted to elasticated articles, but can beapplied as a non-elasticated urine-collecting insert and in any suitableform whatsoever.

We claim:
 1. A urine-collecting insert for a diaper or an incontinenceguard, said insert being sized and configured to be placed over thegenital organs of a wearer and comprising a liquid permeable facingwhich is intended to lie closest to the wearer's body in use andcomprises an inner casing layer of liquid permeable material, a liquidpermeable backing consisting of a liquid permeable outer casing layer,said inner casing and outer casing layers having lateral edges and beingmutually joined at said edges, and an absorbent pad interposed betweensaid facing and backing and in direct contact with said outer casinglayer in a central area of said pad, said backing having a lower liquidpermeability than said facing and allowing liquid transfer from saidabsorbent pad through said backing progressively as the absorbent padbecomes saturated, thereby enabling liquid absorbed by the insert tospread in said absorbent pad and pass through the backing relativelyslowly and in a controlled fashion.
 2. An insert according to claim 1,wherein the outer casing layer consists of a perforatedliquid-impervious material.
 3. An insert according to claim 1, whereinthe outer casing layer consists of a liquid permeable material.
 4. Aninsert according to claim 3, wherein the outer casing layer consists ofa hydrophobically-treated liquid permeable material.
 5. An insertaccording to claim 1, wherein the outer casing layer presents zoneswhich exhibit mutually different degrees of liquid permeability,therewith enabling transportation of liquid through the outer casinglayer to be guided and controlled.
 6. An insert according to claim 5,wherein the mutually different degrees of liquid permeability of saidzones is achieved through mutually different degrees of perforation ormutually different degrees of hydrophobicity.
 7. An insert according toclaim 1, wherein the absorbent pad, at least in a first part thereofintended, in use, to embrace a wearer's crotch either completely orpartially, narrows towards a free end of said first part; at least oneelastic device being attached, in a pretensioned state, to the innercasing layer and extending from the free end along side edges of theabsorbent pad over at least a portion of said side edges; and whereincontraction of said at least one elastic device from its pretensionedstate causes said first part of the absorbent pad to take a curved shapeso that when the article is worn, said first part will be curvedinwardly beneath the crotch of the wearer.
 8. An insert according toclaim 7, wherein the outer casing layer includes an upper zone which hasat least an extension, said extension, when the insert is worn, beingintended to be turned up towards a wearer's stomach, and a lower zonewhich extends from the upper zone to the free end of the insert; andsaid upper zone being more permeable to liquid than the lower zone.